The Art, A Hotel Denver Colorado FULL REVIEW

The Art, A Hotel. Denver, Colorado.

2018 marks the beginning of the Fitness Travel Series, where we research and report on the BEST fitness resorts and vacations for individuals looking for active escapes.

Our first stop in Colorado was the Mile High City, Denver, where we stayed at The Art- A Hotel. Let’s just get this out there- the hotel recently won the Reader’s Choice Award in Condé Nast Traveler.This boutique style hotel is, as the name suggests, packed with fascinating art and complements the Denver Museum of Art (which it is next to), very nicely. Denver is a very modern, eco-friendly, and a health conscious city.

Paul and the rest of the concierge team at the hotel are exceptionally knowledgeable. We learnt that Colorado is the third fittest state in the U.S- a 5k is taking place in the area practically every couple of days (and so it would be extremely plausible to add one into your itinerary at the drop of a hat).

It should come as no surprise that there are fitness opportunities everywhere in Denver (and it is egalitarian in nature). The city noticed that during the day there was in influx of homeless individuals residing in the local parks- thus, Civic Center Moves was created, which hosts fitness classes three times a week for free in local parks. Everyone from businessmen to homeless individuals gather together to take part in crossfit, yoga and a variety of other health-forward classes for the public.

There was definitely a noticeable homeless presence, and our hearts go out to everyone who has found themselves in that situation. We have been told it’s the same in any major U.S city- as we don’t reside in one ourselves it was perhaps a little more noticeable to us. With that said we found everyone we met exceptionally friendly, talkative and just happy to be there!

With an array of full-sized gyms, yoga studios and crossfit boxes aplenty, you’ll be sure to find a perfect match for your needs during your visit.

– We are at altitude in Denver should it influence your training (or drinking).

Don’t forget, if you’d prefer to watch live sport rather than participate, you have on your doorstep Coors Field (Colorado Rockies- MLB), Sports Authority Field (Denver Broncos- NFL), and the Pepsi Center (Denver Nuggets- NBA, Colorado Avalanche NHL). Also, Denver is not as cold as the TV may have you believe. Whilst it makes for beautiful cutaways to show the Rocky Mountains during NFL games, the reality is the temperatures are never extreme. Rarely will you find a zero degree day (farenheit that is). For reference, Denver lines up with Raleigh, North Carolina, and the temperatures are pretty mild. Take a hoody or jacket for evenings in winter.

Room Accommodations

View from the room

The Art had graciously hosted us for a two-night stay in order to fully experience all that the hotel had to offer. However, our only complaint upon departing from this beautiful resort was that we weren’t able to enjoy it longer.

Our incredibly spacious and immaculate room resided on the 9th (top!) floor and had unbelievable views. The hotel is actually also located close to the Denver convention center should you want to stay on your next business trip too.

What really stood out to us upon arrival was how bright, welcoming and clean the entire hotel was, and our room was no exception. This sky-high room was packed with a King size bed, stocked mini-fridge, espresso machine, plush robes, and every complimentary amenity you could imagine! Just in case that wasn’t enough, the helpful staff even escorted us to and from Union Station in a cozy and stylish Lincoln Navigator. It is impossible to point out only one quality that The Art does well, but I must make a special mention that the customer service was bar none.

Top floor Mountain View room with king size bed

Fitness Facilities Overview

Of course the huge focus of this review and our entire travel series are the fitness centers offered by various resorts, as well as the activities available to create the ultimate active escapes. The Art, A Hotel offers a luxury getaway for any athlete or fitness enthusiast. When you enter the fitness center, complimentary fruit, water and towels are available for you during your training session. The equipment appeared to be kept just as clean and inviting as the rest of the hotel, and had dedicated changing/shower areas.

See our YouTube video for more (if you just want to see the facility, skip to 5:09)

Though the space is not massive, it is quite sufficient for 99% of the active community out there looking to achieve a quality workout whilst traveling. During our stay it was always quiet in there too. The fitness center is fully equipped with two high-spec treadmills, two smart-strides, fixed-resistance machines (leg extension, leg curl, tricep extension, bicep curl, various cable machines), full incremental sets of kettlebells & dumbbells that go up to 50lbs, yoga mats and slam balls.

The hotel even has reciprocal privileges with Matrix Fitness & Spa just down the street- it is worth noting that this is a large, fully-equipped gym facility which even has classes from pilates to barre. Hotel guests can use the facilities there and also get 20% off spa services.

They also have a relationship with Core Power Yoga, and they lead the hotels’ yoga on the terrace series in summer, fall, and late spring. Guests have access to their studio also which is on Capital hill. Other great facilities in the area to check out include CrossFit Broadway and F.I.T gym.

Our Experience, Recommendations, And What We Did There

Do-

Rent a bike! Denver is an extremely bike friendly city, with dedicated lanes everywhere. Hop on a b-cycle and take advantage of the stations all over the city as you explore.

You really can have your cake and eat it. With all that a metropolitan district has to offer for shopping, eating, drinking and downtown fitness, you can also very easily take short trips out of the center for some of the best hikes around. Here are some close by suggestions to get you started:

– Test yourself by tackling the 1000 step Incline in Manitou Springs (1 1/4 hour from Downtown Denver)– Only an hours drive from Colorado Springs (home of the U.S Olympic training center), or 35 minutes to Boulder (one of the top destinations for training camps in the country).

– Get your recreation fix in Denver itself with its many parks and Cherry Creek Trail (you could cycle the full 42 miles of it if you wanted!)

Summary

To summarize this resort, we believe it to be an ideal luxury city-escape fit for active individuals. The hotel truly is an art gallery in itself and accurately represents the culture, diversity and beauty of Denver, Colorado. We were more than impressed with the room accommodations as well as the fitness center. If there was one aspect of the gym that was lacking, it would be that the weights did not exceed 50lbs and there were no squat racks or barbells for the heaviest of workouts. We can appreciate though that not many resorts will support such types of training, which made it even more helpful of The Art staff to tell us about the incredible synergy they have with Matrix gym, as well as point us in the direction of local crossfit gyms and yoga studios- we tried to find out as much as we could, whatever your taste/needs! A great asset to it’s location is the proximity to 16th street, the nearby parks, and all that Denver has to offer, whilst being very close to hiking territory. As for cycling routes, they begin on your doorstep!

Usefulness For Athletes: As stated before, 99% of athletes are going to greatly benefit from this hotel and experience no setbacks in their current training programs when using the fitness facilities, making it an ideal short-break escape. It’s also a great option should you have business near the Convention center and want to stay on your regimen.